Is it more important to be a good person or to perform good acts (virtue ethics vs action ethics)? 

I think it is more important to be a good person. Although good acts can show the good things that people can do, being a good person means that there are (most likely) good intentions in mind behind a person’s actions and these good intentions can continually allow for good things to happen. Similarly to the example stated in the reading relating to whether it’s more important to be someone who cares about the environment or someone who takes actions helping the environment, someone who cares about the environment will often be the one who takes action. If someone is a good person, they are likely to take action towards something they feel passionate about. These people use their passions as the reasons to do good in the world and do the good actions that have positive effects on other beings on the planet. Someone can perform good acts, but this does not necessarily mean that they are a good person or that they genuinely care about the cause they are acting for.

Do the pleasure and pain of non-human animals matter as much as the pleasure and pain of humans (speciesism)?

The pleasure and pain of non-human animals matters just as much as the pleasure and pain of humans. Relating to the topic of speciesism, where there is the view that some species are more important than others, humans have taken the initiative of placing themselves in the position of being most worthy of special treatment and importance (anthropocentrism). This has placed other species in a less important position where their pleasure and pain is not viewed as significant as those of humans. It has been shown that non-human animals feel emotions just as humans do, therefore, their pleasure and pain should matter just as much as those of humans but sometimes people still disregard this. On one hand, many people view their pets as a member of the family and here it can be seen that these non-human animals’ feelings are considered in the relationship they have with the family. On the other hand, there are many cases of non-human animas being treated inhumanly, whether it’s animal abuse towards pets or animals being killed for food, and in these cases the pain and pleasure of these non-human animals is not acknowledged. Since non-human animals also have emotions, they should be respected as many as much as human feelings are concerned.

Is my own life worth more than the lives of others, the same, or less (selfishness vs altruism)?

I think that my life is worth the same as the lives of others. Everyone and everything (including other species) are unique so it is hard to place one in a higher or lower position than others. I believe that every life is equal and there is not one life that is worth less than another life. Although being altruistic is good, since this greatly involves helping others, it can be too much to be too selfless and not take yourself into consideration. It is harmful to be too selfless, as it is harmful to be extremely selfish. Considering this, while there are people in the world who are rather altruistic, there are also many people who are quite selfish. Though I think every life is equal, it does not take into account those who commit crimes. These people who act upon their destructive thoughts should be punished as deemed appropriate for their crimes, even though I consider all lives equivalent.